An Island of the Earth
by Rosie1818
Summary: The 4th Great Shinobi World War has ended. Despite the land of wind funding the war, their reluctance to fund Suna on any new projects have created a total economic drought. In response, Gaara sends a team to a newly discovered island in the ocean bordering Suna in hopes that it will contain a new form of industry. However, siege of Infant Island leads to the awakening of Mothra
1. Chapter 1

An Island of the Earth

Chapter 1

Gaara Sabaku sat at his chair Suna's Kazekage mansion. The Fourth Great Shinobi World War had just come to final conclusion. The entire war, while succeeding in uniting the five great nations, had cost Suna more Ryo than it ever had to spend in its history. While all of the funding for the war was taken care of by the Land of Wind, Suna has had a hard time getting the funds it needs in order to help the depleting economy. As Kazekage, this was his number one priority.

He never thought that becoming the most powerful ninja in Suna meant that he would have to pull double duty as a politician but that was life in this new, modern era. If he wanted to protect his village from every horror that it could face, that meant the more trivial horrors as well.

The only comfort that he faced was that he knew that while he had this problem, the four other kage did as well. The war had decimated not just Suna, but the other nations as well. So, they'd have to rebuild each other. Shikamaru, his future brother in law, had been in and out of the village providing assistance wherever he could but Suna's economic problem had been "such a bother" as he always said in the past.

Temari would be moving to Konoha soon to be with her new husband and starting a family of their own. Kankuro's place in Suna was counter-terrorism and he had no time to waste with the boredom that was economics.

After all the enemies that he had to face in his life, Gaara found that the economic status of Suna was his greatest as whenever he thought he was getting somewhere, Baki or the Suna Council would be entering the room with another stack of monotonous documents which went into great detail about a numerous number of issues that he was yet to consider. He had already done as much as he could, even dispatching an expedition across the ocean to determine if there was any uncharted land that was available for usage.

Ebizo was also still on his case about finding a wife in order to keep the title of Kazekage within Suna. While the tensions between Suna and Konoha had come to a end, the council was too unsure with having the future rulers of Suna grow up in a completely different environment.

"You alright?" he heard a voice ask.

He looked up to see Shijima entering the room. Her black hair had been getting longer and it fell past her shoulders. She had removed the glasses for a different pair after Gaara called her "Kabuto" one too many times. She had a cup of coffee in her hand, which she placed on the desk, having to move several papers out of the way in the process.

"It's a mess in here, darling," she said annoyed as she began to rearrange the various papers on the desk into stacks so that they went with other papers of similar topics.

Gaara did not answer but continued to make little scribbles on a blank paper that he had in front of him.

Shijima swiped it from him and skimmed it. "Is this almighty policy that is gonna fix the mighty village of Suna and save it from collapsing under a massive economic sand burial?"

"That is a few lines on a page," Gaara answered.

"Interesting work."

"Why thank you very much."

Shijima smiled sweetly, trying to get the Kazekage to do the same but he wouldn't budge. He simply took the coffee off the desk and lifted it to his lips, throwing it back.

"Do you think that the council is gonna have a productive meeting planned today?" she asked.

Her statement finally forced a smile from the young Kazekage. "As they always do."

"I'll give you time to prepare. Keep that chin up, darling. You're doing as well as anyone can do. We'll clean this place up and we'll look great doing it, if I do say myself." Shijima said.

"I'll see you at the meeting. Do me a favor and keep Ebizo on a leash today."

"Haha, I'll do my best."

After Shijima left the room, Gaara stood up and went over to the mansion window, overlooking the massive village. Massive dome towers of light brown sand seemed to twinkle as the sun's rays beat down upon them. He was surrounded on all sides, the tower being located in the center of the village. Each of the towers had very small windows wrapping around the center and flat tops.

The Suna council was basically the real ruler of the village. Overtime, the political system began to eat him alive. The controlling council forced his hand at almost every decision that he made and nothing could progress without their approval. He began to question his very place in the village from time to time due to the harsh conditions that he was forced to govern under.

He understood why the council was there but he, at times, felt like there was nothing to being the Kazekage if most of his decisions were going to be rejected. Sometimes, he felt like the council was harsher on some of his decisions due to the nature of his birth, but Kankuro insisted that this was not the case.

Through all of his insecurities, he knew that he still had Shijima on his side. Since the mess with Metoro, Shijima had become Gaara's closest friend and female of interest. She listened to every complaint that he had and stuck by his side, forgave him for his mistakes, and did her best to help him in any way that she could. He knew that he was marrying her. He had not asked her yet but it was something that he felt inside him.

Taking a deep breath, he knew that standing near the window would do him no favors. He checked the time before deciding that he needed to go to the meeting or else be harassed by the council for neglecting his duties. He exited his mansion and went to the Suna Council's meeting room.

Shijima was waiting for him, as was his brother. Shijima waved him over and Gaara took his seat next to her. The three of them made small talk until Ebizo and the rest of the council made their way into the chambers. They took their seats at the long table placed away from the regular one with Ebizo taking the center seat meant especially for him.

"Good afternoon, everyone." Gaara addressed the room.

He looked around. Many faces, old and young stared back at him. Every seat in the room was now filled and all were looking at the Kazekage, as if expecting him to give them every solution to every problem that they would ever face.

"I suppose that it is time to get our monthly meeting under way, is it not? I'll just get right into it today, as we have much to discuss. As we are all aware, the Land of Wind has been reluctant to give Suna the necessary funding to solve our current labor issues. Since the war, we've had more people in this village than ever before. Our companies are not in need of any more workers, but people in our village are in need of jobs. In between now and are last meeting, I have determined that what we need is another industry of some kind that will help an average man or woman get into the work force and pay enough for them to support themselves and their family.

"To help achieve this, Ebizo and I have sent several teams of shinobi across the land of wind, looking for any potential crop or mineral that will help us achieve this goal. If we are successful in creating this new industry, it will help our village by giving us a monopoly over it and our ability to trade with the other nations will increase significantly. It is important that we find it first, or else fall behind in the recovery process.

"The war had nothing but negative impacts across all five great nations. If we want to remain as a competitor with the rest of them, we need other options to help the economy. I do not want those teams to be our only options. Does anyone here have any suggestions on what can be done?"

Ebizo stood up, making Gaara narrow his eyes.

"Actually, more on your point, Gaara. Yesterday, I received a scroll from expedition team four, and I would like to explain its contents to the council, if I may."

"Proceed." Gaara replied.

Ebizo passed the scroll around, suggesting to the group that they read it.

"As you can see here, team four has had a major breakthrough. With the use of summoning jutsu, they sent birds to explore the coastline off of Suna. What they discovered is unbelievable. They have found an island that is not on any map of the five great nations."

"A new island?" Kankuro asked.

"Yes."

"How did this stay off the scope of Suna for so long?" someone asked.

"That is unknown. Perhaps it was through the use of genjutsu by a gang of missing-nin or maybe even the Akatsuki. But, what we know from the team is that the island appears to be deserted. Team four is requesting assistance to explore the island and hopefully discover some sort of new, prospering crops in the area."

"Do you really think we should be disturbing this sort of thing at the level of expedition so quickly? Maybe we should have Team 4 go in themselves. Send them money to rent a vessel and have them go out that way." Gaara said.

One of the council members stood up from his chair and whispered something into Ebizo's ear. The balding old main got a curious look upon his wrinkled face.

"We don't exactly know what is on the island, Lord Kazekage. If it turns out that there is something on that island and it is too powerful, the team could be killed. The blood of those shinobi will be on your hands. That will not reflect well on you in the public eye, will it?"

"As will the blood of every expedition member if the same thing happens. It's a risk that I can take. I've taken bigger ones," Gaara snorted back.

"The council will not allow you to do that, Lord Kazekage. You cannot take risks with people's lives in this manner. If it is an expedition, any death is easier to pass off to the village due to it being an organized assembly of shinobi, all agreeing to it. Ordering them to go alone is another story."

Gaara felt Shijima clutch his hand under the table. He looked into her beautiful eyes.

"What do you all think?" Gaara asked the rest of the room.

Gaara's question prompted massive conversation from the rest of the room. The conversations ended when Ebizo held up his hand. Debate went on for a few minutes until Ebizo saying, "That island is the property of Suna, whether there is anyone on it or not. Anything on that island is ours for the taking. A proper expedition would allow us to have strength in numbers as well as the ability to transport more goods from it back to Suna."

"Any local of island would disagree. If the island does have locals as well as a system of government, it would be wrong to infringe upon their lifestyle. If we force a native people to give up their land, it makes us look tyrannical. That will also ruin our image, Ebizo. The other nations can't be seen to ally with any form of dictatorship, not after the war we just had." Gaara said.

"I agree with Gaara." Kankuro told the rest of the room. "Dictatorship is always the enemy, no matter what form that it takes."

Gaara nodded at his brother before turning back to Ebizo.

"I suggest that we compromise. I will sign off an expedition to the island. However, I want to pick the leaders of it. I also want your signed agreement that it is not the goal of the team to take charge of the island, but to explore it and befriend any natives that it has. We can form a partnership with them in the genuine name of building both of our economies up."

"And if they refuse?"

"We'll persuade them." Gaara lied just to make Ebizo agree. He knew if the locals refused, he'd see to it that they'd be left alone.

Ebizo turned to the rest of the council. The group talked among themselves for a few minutes before turning back.

"The council agrees to these conditions. Pick your finest subordinates. The expedition for the new colony will begin at the end of the week."

Gaara turned to Shijima. "Hey, doll. Wanna do me a favor?"

Shijima's eyes widened.

"You're the only one I trust to not screw up out there."

Shijima bowed her head. "Yes, sir."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"I can't believe I let you rope me into these things." Shijima said folding more of her clothing up.

"I'm sorry. I need someone I trust to go out there. This is a very important matter." Gaara said.

"I am needed here with you more than I am on that rock." She complained.

"I'll be okay. I am not helpless. I promise that I will do as good of a job as you at taking care of my office and myself."

"I doubt that. I take really good care of you and don't you forget that!"

Gaara frowned. He could sense Shijina's real worry.

"Are you worried about Matsuri?"

She gasped and her face fell red. "N-no. Of course not."

"Shijina…"

"I'm not worried about Matsuri."

"That's not the vibe I'm getting from you."

"I can hate the bitch without being worried about her. There's a difference. She needs to lay off of you."

"Matsuri is a child. She's only rude to you because she is jealous of our relationship."

"And what is our relationship, Gaara?" Shijima asked, looking Gaara in the eye.

"What do you mean?"

"We aren't stupid, Gaara. We both know what is expected of us. The council doesn't just let me be your right hand girl because they're being nice. We both know that they want you to marry me. Your brother wants you to marry me. I want you to marry me. Yet, we aren't even dating. We both just sit here and pretend that all is fine and dandy and you send me across the country to some uncharted island. I'm sorry. I don't want that bitch coming near you. Is that so wrong?"

Gaara said nothing, seeing his gourd of sand sitting across the room under his desk. "Nothing about this has anything to do with Matsuri. I just want you out there because I don't trust anyone else to go out there and do the job the way it needs to be done. You have my full trust. No one else on this planet has that. You must understand."

Shijima said nothing in response.

Gaara came over and put both of his hands on her shoulders, gently massaging her. He glanced at her crescent-moon figure again, remarking to himself at how wonderful she looked. He lowered his hands and clutched her waist. Shijima offered no resistance to his touch and placed her hands on top of his, moving them to her stomach.

"This is what I want for the rest of my life, Gaara." She said to him.

"I do too."

"Then what is taking so long for you to commit to me. If you want me, take me. I'm yours." Shijima said.

"I don't want the council to use our relationship for anything bad."

"Forget about the council." Shijima cried breaking his grasp. "All you worry about is the council and how they're going to react to every little thing you do. I know the council has political reasons behind our marriage. I know that. I know that they don't want your nephews from Konoha becoming Kazekage. I know that they don't care about our relationship beyond that. They're not going to use me to spy on you or anything like that. Even if they did, I'd tell them to go fuck themselves and tell you immediately."

"But-"

"No buts. If you really trust me as much as you claim to, you should trust me enough not to sell you out to them. Deep down, you know that's true. You know it!"

Gaara sighed. Shijima was right. He knew that she would not betray his trust. They had already been through so much together. What motivation would she even have to sell him out at this stage of her life and their relationship? He did not answer but ran his fingers through her long, black hair.

"And you should trust me to not be with Matsuri. Trust is the most important thing in any relationship, Shijina."

"I do trust you. I never said I didn't. I don't trust her. The thought of her trying something while I'm gone makes me sick. I want her far, far away from you."

Gaara ran his hands through his hair before going over to his desk and pulling out a pen from it.

"What are you doing?" Shijima asked.

"The council said I get three picks for the expedition. I'm picking you and Kankuro for sure. But, I still have one more pick. I was going to pick Baki. But if you're really worried about Matsuri, I will send her instead. Baki would understand that it was done with the best intentions for our relationship. Baki also wants us to get married, you know."

"Then marry me, you dick. I'm not even worried about dating. Fuck Gaara, we've _been_ dating. You know I'm right. You take me out to dinner. We slow dance. We sleep in the same bed. The only thing we haven't done is fuck, which I'm ready to do whenever you are at this point. The only thing I'm done with is these head games. I want to know right now that if I go on this expedition for you, that you're going to marry me as soon as its over."

Gaara looked at her and waved her over with his hand. She approached only to be hit with a kiss on her lips from the Kazekage. It took her by surprise at first, but she fell into a trance before giggling like a child. Gaara pulled her closed before letting her fall backward, not letting her hit the ground.

"If I agree to marry you, will you stop your bitching?" He asked.

"I might." She said.

"Then I'll tell the council the second you get back. Now come on, let's finish packing."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Shijima looked around at the expedition crew. She knew many of the shinobi that were chosen to go. She knew that captain of the ship. She knew some of the medical ninja, sent in case of an injury and to study of the vegetation for medical purposes. She, Kankuro, and Matsuri were the expedition leaders. She was not too happy about working with Matsuri but was happier with the minx with her than with Gaara. The two girls were not speaking to each other. Matsuri did not say a word to her since she loudly told Kankuro about what had happened between her and Gaara inside the Kazekage office weeks prior. She sat and played with her brown hair for most of the trip to the coastline, seldom talking, which forced Shijima and Kankuro to do all of the heavy lifting in the team. The team was preparing the ship they rented for an immediate departure to the uncharted island as Shijima and Kankuro watched.

"Think this is going to go the way we want it?" Kankuro asked.

"I hope so. I hope for Gaara's emotional sanity. I wish the council would get off his back."

"He has big shoes to fill. The council just sees how young he is at the moment and that he's still wrapping his head on how these politics work. They want him to gain experience before he makes decisions that affect what the village does in the future."

"But he was second in command of the entire army during the war. He's not some hopeless idiot."

"I never agreed to their reasoning. I'm just telling you what it is. It's funny though. I told him that same thing and he said that same thing back to me. I think spending so much time with him as caused you two to co-evolve your opinions."

Shijima blushed and looked back towards the ship. "I just hope you're ready to be his best man."

"I've been ready for that day for a few years now. I'm glad you finally forced the commitment to come out of him. You're perfect for him and I'm glad you made him open his eyes and see that."

Shijima smiled.

"Are you two going to help set the ship up or not?" Matsuri called stubbornly carrying a box.

"Be right there, honey." Shijima called waving making Kankuro snicker.

"You really don't like her, do you?"

"Nope. I can't wait to personally give her the wedding invitation." Shijima replied standing up.

The two walked over to the ship, studying its massive wooden frame. It was big enough to comfortably hold the entire expedition team. Its wooden frame stretched out 100 ft and on the bow was a beautiful mermaid with luscious blonde hair.

It wasn't every day that the people from Suna laid their eyes on a body of water. Most of the crew, even the grown men spent time splashing each other with the compound. Some used it to cover their faces and others dove in the water. They came up with shells, putting them into a bag to presumably take back to the village as souvenirs. After a few orders from Shijima, Kankuro, and Matsuri, the crew boarded the ship and proceeded outward on the open sea. Most of the crew entertained themselves by pretending that they were privates as they set sail.

Shijima ran over to the ship's side, watching it make tiny waves as it traversed across the clear. The waves bobbed off, small bubbles forming until giving a pop and fading out. She closed her eyes and felt a drop of the ocean strike her face. She did nothing to move it and let the drop slide down her cheek before it stopped in place and became too itchy to let stay.

"This is amazing," she said to Kankuro.

"Sure is," He replied.

Shijima looked over to see Matsuri glaring in her direction. Upon the two girls making eye contact, Matsuri quickly pretended to be looking at something else. Shijima laughed to herself before letting Kankuro know that she was going to rest and that he was in charge of the ship. She went over next to the captain as he maneuvered the ship, grabbed a pillow, and laid herself down on the deck of the ship, instructing the captain to wake her if anything happened she needed to know about.

###

"Shijima, the island."

Shijima awoke to this phrase being repeated over and over by the captain. She sat up, reaching for her glasses that had fallen off in her sleep and putting them on her face. She shook the cobwebs out of her head and stood up, staring outward. The island was bigger than she thought it was going to be. The entire thing was covered by green. Green trees coated the entire island. Not one inch of the ground could be seen at the distance they were sailing due to the amount of them. The cliffs were thick and rocky. The waves gave a cracking noise as they smacked the sides of the cliff. Pointed rocks stuck up from the ocean water near the sides of the cliffs.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Kankuro asked next to her.

Shijima nodded. "It is the most beautiful place I've ever seen in my life. It's so romantic."

"Land near that patch of land." Matsuri ordered the captain who agreed with her decision. "Keep sightseeing. I'll take care of the job."

"I'll be sure to tell Gaara what a wonderful job you're doing," Shijima said chuckling.

Kankuro again laughed as Matsuri angrily glared at Shijima who laughed as well.

"I do not appreciate you antagonizing me," Matsuri said.

Shijima shrugged as the captain pulled the vessel into the dock. Shijima, Matsuri, and Kankuro got the crew off the vessel, Shijima taking roll to make sure that everyone had gotten off the vessel. She gave a speech, reminding everyone what their mission to the island was and that if they had any trouble, find a way to alert the rest of the groups. She then split everyone up, making sure to have a medical ninja as well as a scientist in each group, as to spread them out across the island at a faster rate. The groups began moving off across the island. Shijima, Matsuri, and Kankuro stood by the ship and prepared a little while longer.

"I hope they know what they're doing," Shijima said.

"They do. You have to have trust. That's how relationships work," Matsuri said.

Kankuro looked at Shijima, waiting in anticipation for what sassy response was going to come across her lips.

"Look, Matsuri. I'm trying to be as professional as I can with you here. But you're making it very hard to not just beat the shit out of you right now. Can't you, for your own sake, just be a professional?"

"Be a professional? You're the one playing backstage politics behind Gaara and scaring him into forcing me to go on this shit heap."

"Who the hell told you that?" Shijima asked angrily.

"None of your business."

"Who told you that?"

"I'm not telling you, so don't press the matter."

"It wasn't Gaara, was it?"

"Gaara has not been talking to me since you entered the picture because you control him and manipulate him into not. I don't know why you're so worried about me. I'm not the only girl in Suna that wants to fuck Gaara. There's plenty more. My friend, Sari, for instance would talk about it all the time."

Shijima clenched her hand into a fist. "Matsuri... I'm warning you."

"We'd talk about how we were going to get him out and see if he wanted to hit both of us at the same time. I don't think he'd turn that down, do you?"

Kankuro, at this point, was protesting for Matsuri to stop.

"You're the one who wanted to fight, Shijima. Don't get mad when I defend myself. You have no right to." Matsuri laughed.

"You don't have the right to talk about Gaara like that."

The two girls got closer to each other, their noses touching. Matsuri suddenly winded back and delivered a hard slap to Shijima's face. The sound seemed to echo off the nearby cliff and bounce back into Shijima's ear. Shijima winded back and threw a punch, connecting with Matsuri's nose. Kankuro shot Karasu out of his scroll which got in the middle of the two girls, interfering with their fight. Shijima attempted to get around Karasu but the puppet's head whipped around to look at her face, scaring her to immobilization.

"Now, there will be no more of that happening," Kankuro ordered.

"Fuck both of you," Matsuri yelled.

Anger swelled inside of Shijima. She dug her nails into the palms of her hands and felt her muscles clenching inside her body. She raised her hand up to her face, gently rubbing the area of her face where Matsuri had slapped her head wildly, she left Kankuro and Matsuri, despite their shouts for her to come back. Shijima did not listen. She walked throughout the forest, hearing the buzzing of the bugs and the chirping of the birds. She looked at the trees, pulling a leaf off of one and looking at it. Studying it for a second, she threw it and let the wind take it and do what it wanted with it. She felt something land on her arm and looked at it, noticing that it was a yellow bug she had never seen before. The small creature crawled up her arm for a little bit before its wings flapped and it took off upward towards the tops of the trees.

As she walked, she eventually came over to a tree, noticing what was next to it. A tall, yellow flower sat, slowly drifting with the wind. The stem was the same dark green as the treetops and thick leaves went up the side. Admiring the flower, Shijima put her hand out and went up the stem. The texture felt like sandpaper, rough and thick. She let out a awkward noise upon touching the plant, retracting her hand when it was rougher than she thought it would be. She skimmed the plant from top to bottom.

She heard a subtle rumbling of leaves coming from her left. Her head suddenly darted in that direction, but she saw nothing.

"Matsuri, if that's you... I'm gonna kick your ass," she warned.

The rustling sounded again. Shijima whipped out a kunai knife from her pocket, trying her best to sound confident, despite the goosebumps growing on her arm. 'W-Who's there? Show yourself before I find you."

She knew she wasn't hiding her fear. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing up and her stomach had butterflies inside of it. Her grip on her kunai tightened and her hands violently trembled

Hearing a feint growling noise from behind her, she reached for her hoshuriken, but felt a force clamp down on her arm. She shrieked seeing the yellow flower on her arm, its leaves shooting out from its stem, wrapping around her body. She thrashed and shook her body, but the flower's grip was too tight. She felt the plant began sucking on her skin. She felt the blood from her veins leaving her, entering the body of the plant that was attacking her. She let out a vicious scream, punching and kicking this flower, trying to loosen its grip from her body. Her strength began leaving her body.A bright light suddenly filled the air, and all she could see was white.

'Am I dying?' She thought to herself.

Shijima felt her body hit the grass below and she, perhaps out of instinct lifted her body and crawled from the plant until her body slammed against another tree. She felt her strength fading her body. Her vision was still blurry and the world seemed to spin before her. She blinked once. Nothing. She blinked twice. Nothing. She blinked a third time. Two girls stood before her. But, they weren't any girls. They couldn't have been more than ten inches tall. The only thing she remembered before blacking out was their gorgeous black hair and the red flowers in their hair.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Shijima woke up. She remembered the flower that was attacking her and instantly sat up and took the kunai out from her pocket, looking around. She noticed that the walls were rocky and instantly determined she was in a cave. She almost gagged smelling the cave-water and stood up. She needed to escape the cave and whatever was holding her hostage before anything else happened. She looked around the room and didn't see anything. She slipped out of a hole in the wall which led to nothing but more cave. She slipped in and out a few more crevices, determining herself to be running in circles.

'The things I do for love...' she thought to herself.

After minutes of navigations, one of the crevices led to light. Smiling, she ran towards it and ducked under the narrow gap before being outside once again. However, sitting before her was not a luscious band of trees, but was brown dirt ground. Dark skinned men and women, all wearing animal skin for clothing as well as face paint were gathered in a circle. Some of the people were sitting, playing a set of drums in an emphatic rhythm. Shijima stood and watch these local begin breaking out in a highly choreographed song and dance. The drums were joined by more of the same instruments as the natives began twirling their legs, spinning like their lives depended on it.

That's when she heard them. She couldn't pinpoint the locations of the voices at first, but saw them at the center of the circle as they moved towards the front. It was the little girls. Dressed in a fine, tight red two piece, Shijima could now tell that they had the appearance of grown women, but maintained their small stature, looking very much like dolls she played with when she was younger back in Suna. She also could now see that they were clearly twins. They led the song as if they had been doing it for a million years.

Mosura ya Mosura

(Mothra oh Mothra)

Dongan kasakuyan indo muu

(If we were to call for help)

Rusuto uiraandoa, hanba hanbamuyan, randa banunradan

(Over time, over sea, like a wave)

Tounjukanraa

(You'd come)

Kasaku yaanmu

(Our guardian angel)

Mosura ya Mosura

(Mothra oh Mothra)

Dongan kasakuyan indo muu

(If we were to call for help)

Rusuto uiraandoa, hanba hanbamuyan, randa banunradan

(Over time, over sea, like a wave)

Tounjukanraa

(You'd come)

Kasaku yaanmu

(Our guardian angel)

Mosura ya Mosura

(Mothra oh Mothra)

Tasukete yo te yobeba

(If we were to call for help)

Toki o koete, umi o koete, nami no yo ni

(Over time, over sea, like a wave)

Yate kuru

(You'd come)

Mamorigami

(Our guardian Angel)

Mosura ya Mosura

(Mothra oh Mothra)

Yasasishasae wasure

(Of forgotten kindness and ruined spirits)

Arehateta hito no kokoro inorinagara utaitai

(We pray for the people's spirit as we sing)

Ai no uta

(This song of love)

Mosura ya Mosura

(Mothra oh Mothra)

Dongan kasakuyan indo muu

(If we were to call for help)

Rusuto uiraandoa, hanba hanbamuyan, randa banunradan

(Over time, over sea, like a wave)

Tounjukanraa

(You'd come)

Kasaku yaanmu!

(Our guardian angel!)

Shijima stood, watching the entire dance before it came to a final conclusion. The twins' voices sounded soft bells, ringing through the air. Their voices calmed the storm going on inside of her head, even if it was for a second. She almost forgot where she was, on the uncharted island. The song ending shot her back into reality of this fact. She realized that it was the mission of Suna to befriend any natives on this island. So, Shijima, taking a deep breath, walked forward, prompting gasps from the natives as she walked through. She wanted to talk to these twins, as they were unique and had saved her from the carnivorous plant. She noticed that they stopped moving and stared at one another before turning around, mirroring each other's movements.

"Hello everyone. My name is Shijima Hoki. You saved me from the gold flower. I come from the land of wind, part of Sunagakure. We discovered your island off the coast of the land of wind. I have a team of others with me. We have been sent here by our Kazekage, Gaara Sabaku, in hopes of bringing our friendship to anyone that may live here. Our people are in desperate need of help. The recent war has left our people without the necessary means of supporting themselves. A growing number of citizens have lost their jobs, their food, and their hope. In response, another aspect of our mission is to see if anything on this island is capable of helping our people support themselves and their children."

The twins looked at each other and back to Shijima.

"We know of Sunagakure," they said in unison. "We know of all that goes on in the Five Great Nations. We know of your wars. We do not wish to get involved in your affairs. Infant Island cannot exist with people of your kind."

"What? Why not?" Shijima asked putting her hand to her chest.

"Because you cause nothing but great destruction. You bend and shape reality. You use the earth's power as your own. The powers of earth, wind, fire, and water are not meant for your usage. They belong to the planet. For you all to harness the planet's energy inside of yourselves and use it to unleash the type of destruction at the scale that you, you are offending the earth. If you continue down the path that you're on, you will either destroy yourselves or this planet."

The twins continued speaking in unison, their mouths unmoving. They were using some sort of telepathy for communication.

"It is true that our island was cloaked. But that was a decision made by Mothra, our dearest guardian and earth's mightiest defender. It came after we were discovered. The Akatsuki, as you know them, was able to detect Mothra's power. They came to this island, despite it being cloaked, and attempted to subdue her. However, Mothra was able to push them back from the island and put a mystic veil of protection over us. However, that protection was broken by the Infinite Tsukuyomi from your war. The Mothra that was has passed away from natural causes. Now, she is waiting to be reborn in this egg."

The twins gestured with their tiny arms, their movements still mirroring one another. Shijima looked up and jumped backward instantly, her eyes wide seeing the massive egg sitting on a nearby cliff near the top of the mountain. It was striped bright blue and yellow. Massive white polka dots went across the entirety of the egg. The most striking thing to Shijima was its size. It was tone of the biggest things that she had ever seen in her life, rivaling some of the bigger buildings in Suna. Shijima turned back to the fairies.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"You must understand why our two worlds can never coexist. Infant Island lives in harmony with the earth. We are the Cosmos that keep the earth's natural order in balance. We understand earth's nature as a living entity. Your society uses nature as a tool to achieve its own purposes, not respecting its will and desires. Mothra, as well as the rest of us, view your society as tattered and broken. We, being harmonious with nature, cannot work with you because you will use us as you use the planet's earth, wind, fire, and water. Mothra will never let Infant Island be used by you," the twins said.

"We don't want to abuse your friendship. We just... We need help. The war had a-"

"And whose war was it?" the twins asked.

Shijima was silent.

"We don't want to bring harm to your people. We want you all to learn what you are doing wrong. It pains us a great deal to see the earth's resources used in this way. You want to use Infant Island as a resource, yet you abuse your other resources. The difference between us and them is we have a will. This will protects us from you and anything that you try to do to us."

Shijima's hand went into a fist and she began lashing out at the twins. "Then why the hell did you save me from the plant? If I'm part of such a disease to the planet, why didn't you just let the planet kill me and take its revenge? Why did you save me? You know that any life ending is bad. Children at my village are suffering. Orphans run the streets because their parents died in the war. Children, who have no interest in Ninjutsu or ever touching the lifestyle that threatens earth, are dying. It is not the job of our government to let this happen. We have to stop it in any way that we can. We have a whole city of people. We don't just have a few families and two fairies."

The natives began circling Shijima as her shouts became louder although the twin fairies ordered them to stand down.

"That is our point, young one. We do not understand. There is much that we do not understand about each other's cultures. Therefore, any attempt at blending us together will result in conflict. It is our belief that your current crisis is a result of your foolish behavior. It is a learning opportunity for you and a chance to improve. Our intervention would cause nothing but damage to both of our societies. We would like to avoid this path of needless destruction. We saved you because if we didn't, it would have surely started trouble between us"

Shijima looked back at the egg before turning back to the twin fairies. "Why are you so adamant about keeping us from you?"

The twin fairies looked at each other. "We do not want to have to destroy your world."

Shijima's entire body got the chills. She looked at the fairies again. Their cold expressions showed that they were dead serious about the bold statement that they just made. Whatever was in that egg, the girls believed that it contained enough power to destroy the entire ninja world. While this statement coming from anyone else would have made the girl break out into fits of laughter. Something about the way the fairies said it and the way their eyes narrowed told Shijima that they were not making that statement through faith alone. They _knew_ "Mothra" was capable of destruction on a godly scale. She began thinking that the expedition should leave Infant Island. If there was any chance Mothra was a strong as they claimed, she could destroy Suna.

"Well, I didn't mean to waste your time. I will go," Shijima said bowing her head.

The twin fairies did the same as Shijima walked off back into the woods, far out of their sight.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5  
"The expedition of Suna made a randevu back at their ship. Shijima made everyone throw out everything that they had learned about the island in front of them. Samples of plants were mostly tossed in front of her, with most of the scientists babbling about it was some 'breakthrough discovery and an "evolutionary wonder." As much as Shijima respected the work they did, that was not what they came for, as she reminded them.

""I think I found something of value," Matsuri's irritating voice screeched.

"Shijima looked at the now returning Kankuro who seemed to share her look of disinterest. Matsuri came up to the two of them and held up a small black pot, filled with even smaller red berries. Shijima looked down at the berries and back to Matsuri.

"Where did you find these?"

"They were just in the woods. I found tons of them. Most of their bushes were very neatly arranged in a straight line. It was strange because they were so neat."

Shijima glared at her. "How much did you take?"

"Tons. They're tiny so the scientists are going to need a lot of samples for their experiments. Its worth it though. We could be sitting on exactly what Gaara wanted here."

"That's Lord Kazekage to you," Shijima reminded a now scowling Matsuri. "I don't know how I feel about us bringing those back."

Masturi smirked. "That's the mission. Our job was to find something that may be of value and I have done so. I am now going back on the boat with everyone else." The brunette hopped on the boat faster than Shijima could react.

Images of the twin fairies and Mothra's egg flashed in her mind as soon as Matsuri's feet touched the boat. She even thought she have heard the cry of some kind of monster, although it was very distressed.

"Shijima...you alright?" Kankuro asked.

"I-I want to go home," she replied. "I want to get off of this island and never come back."

"Something scare you?" He asked getting no answer before Shijima made her way back to the boat. He shrugged being the last one on the ship before it went out.

###

Ebizo folded his hands as the report left his hand. He passed it over to Gaara, who flipped through it as well.

"Very interesting report. It will be interesting to see what our medical ninja can do with those berries. Good work, Shijima." Ebizo commended.

Shijima sat in the chair, clutching her thighs looking down at the ground. She did not bother acknowledging Ebizo's comments. She looked at Gaara, begging him to see the discomfort in her face.

"Doll, are you okay?" He asked her.

"I-I don't think we should do anything with the berries. I think we should return them to the island," she said.

Ebizo shot Gaara a condescending stare. "Preposterous. We don't have time for that foolishness. I already had the council sign off on the bill to start the testing. All its doing now is awaiting the Kazekage's signature and we can get started.

Now Gaara was the one to look at Ebizo. "I'd like to read it first. I'm not going to just sign off to anything. If Shijima has a concern about the berries, she should be allowed to state her case. She led the expedition and has a right to report on it."

"Everything that happened has been reported on. I want you to sign that document by tomorrow's council meeting. If you don't, there may be severe consequences for you, Lord Kazekage." Ebizo snapped raising his finger and pointing it at Gaara before picking himself up and leaving the room.

As soon as Ebizo left, Shijima broke into tears and threw her arms around Gaara. Her soft cried turned into frightened wails as a clearly disturbed Gaara patted her on the back, unsure of how to handle the situation. He held Shijima in his arms for a long while before finally mustering something from his mouth.

"What's going on, Shijima? What happened?"

"We stole from them, Gaara. We stole the berries from Infant Island. We stole them from their people. We stole them from Mothra! It's all my fault. I didn't speak up."

"Shijima, what are you talking about? Who is Mothra?" Gaara asked.

"The natives, Gaara. I met the native people. I met the cosmos. I-" She stammered

"Shijima, you need to calm down and start over. I need to know exactly what happened to you on that island. I need every detail."

Gaara's grip on her tightened.

Shijima nodded, broke away and wiped away her tears. "The Island... It's- It's called "Infant Island." Its people are primitive. They live in the caves engrained on a specific region of cliffs. Their leaders are two tiny twin fairies. They're probably ten centimeters tall."

"Why didn't anyone see this?"

"I was alone, okay. I got in a fight with Matsuri and ran off."

Gaara scowled.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that I told them of what we were doing. They already knew. They knew of Suna. They said that our struggle is punishment for the war. Its our punishment for abusing the earth's resources and its elements. They won't help us because they're afraid that we're going to abuse them like we abuse the earth."

"Abuse the elements? What does that mean?"

"Ninjustu... All of us are guilty... We steal the earth's energy through our ninjutsu and the fairies claim that the earth is upset. They said we're going to kill the earth if we don't stop. They said we need to change or else..."

"Or else what?"

"They'll send her..." Shijima whispered.

"Who is her?"

"Mothra. Gaara, her egg... Mothra's egg... Its the biggest thing I've ever seen in my life. The fairies are sure that Mothra can destroy the entire ninja world."

Gaara smirked. "You know, I've heard that a lot these past few months."

"You didn't see their eyes... Gaara, they were serious."

Gaara smirked.

"God damn it, Gaara. I don't want to play with fate, and you shouldn't either. You, of all people, should know what happens when a monster is loose in Suna. I don't want to make them mad. I want to return the berries to the people. They will know that we did it. We have to. We have to do the right thing here. We can find a new way to help Suna. We need to leave Infant Island in piece. Please, do not sign that bill. They are going to find something. I've felt it since Matsuri brought those stupid berries on board."

Before Gaara could answer, he heard a knock at the door. He went over and opened it, seeing Temari and his future brother-in-law, Shikamaru. The duo entered the Kazekage mansion after embracing Gaara. Shijima leaned by the door, hugging the two as well.

"What brings you two here?" Gaara asked.

"Well, I've been sent as Konoha's ambassador to your village. Ebizo wrote to our village about the massive shipment of berries that you all received. We thought that maybe we could help you guys study them and purchase a few to help you get started on your war recovery from the war," Shikamaru answered.

Gaara couldn't help but think that he found Shikamaru to look very much like a pineapple as he spoke. Temari had went to the kitchen for some refreshments.

"How can he have done that. I haven't even signed off on the bill to study the berries yet."

"What? Why not?" Shikamaru asked.

"There has been some recent developments in this saga," Gaara said gesturing to Shijima.

Shikamaru and Temari were brought up to speed on everything that Shijima had seen on Infant Island. While Temari sided with Shijima immediatley, Shikamaru was silent on the matter, seemingly hesitant to pick a side in the matter. Gaara knew his brother-in-law at this point. He knew that Shikamaru was unconvinced because it was hard for him to take the fact that Mothra was capable of destroying the ninja world seriously. Gaara had to admit that it was when Shijima began losing him too. It isn't a very good threat anymore. The shinobi were not as willing to lend an ear to that type of threat after the war almost had destroyed everything and claimed the lives of people that meant something. It was hard believing that anything that came out of the egg Shijima described could do any more harm than what they had already faced.

"I must admit that this type of thing would be a bit easier to take seriously if it was in the report... No disrespect to you..." Shikamaru said to Shijima. "But, Shijima, you must understand that we all have seen the end of the world and we survived it. If we can break out of the Infinite Tsukuyomi, I think we can handle whatever comes out of that egg. We know some powerful Shinobi. You have to have faith that they would never bow down to Mothra, if it ever did come to the great nations."

"But what if... What if we can't stop her? What if no one can?" Shijima asked.

"We have people who can. We don't need to worry about that. Gaara, my opinion is that you sign the bill. These berries could be the first step at not only improving Suna's post-war status, if will further help soothe any remaining tensions that we have. Konoha wants in. Kakashi sees great promise in these berries and wants a shipment of them brought back to Konoha."

Shijima looked over at Gaara, shaking her head. "I don't know," Gaara answered. "I need to actually read what Ebizo and the council want to do with them before I sign off on anything. Its weird that he gave me this bill already signed. He has never done that before since I took office and that's slightly concerning. I won't lie."

Gaara stood up, shutting himself in his office and locking the door tight to block out any outside influences from reading the bill.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

It was cold in the council chambers on the day of the meeting. Gaara had to wear thicker layers than he normally did to the meetings. He had gotten used to the fluctuating temperature of the bipolar room, so he had started to prepare thicker clothing. He was close to Shijima, who had gone pale after her experiences on Infant Island. Gaara watched as Ebizo and the rest of the council take their seats, their expressions blank. The meeting began with Shikamaru, acting as the ambassador from Konoha giving a speech on how much money they were willing to give the village of Suna for the berries.

"Konoha is getting bigger. More Ryo is coming into the village than ever before and we feel it is our obligation to use this wealth to, not only aid our own recovery, but yours as well. We could not have won the war without all of you and we are willing to pay for these berries to use them in our own research, despite if we find them useful for medical purposes or not," he said. "We wish to continue this line of friendship that the war started."

Ebizo looked across the room when Shikamaru. "What say you, Lord Kazekage? Have you signed the agreement?"

Gaara did not answer right away. He felt Shijima's hand tugging at his hand before placing hers in his which made him look at her. She shook her head at him and had a look of distress on her. Gaara stood up and looked around the room before turning back to Ebizo, saying,

"I'm afraid that I have not."

"Why not?" Ebizo asked, a snarl coming upon his face.

"Because there are a few things that I do not like in this version of the document. If I signed this, it would give the control of the berries to you and Konoha's council. If would not give myself or the Hokage any say in what is to happen to them. The reasoning is that in for the time being, Suna's recovery items should be left in charge of the council in the name of making faster decisions. I do not accept the conditions. I want a say in what gets done and your council should not be trying to make the Kazekage title irrelevant. I find it disgusting. It frankly spits on the legacy of my father and all of the other Kages before. They made decisions about this village. I will not let their legacy be destroyed by your greed."

Ebizo folded his hands and the other members of the Suna council looked at him after Gaara was done with his brief speech.

"Lord Kazekage, this is a matter that is of grave importance. If it makes you feel better, we do not wish to keep total control over the berries. We will be returning the Equal Contribution Clause to the berries when we feel like the crisis of Suna has been revoked. Konoha is offering to buy these berries which may have no worth in the name of basically giving Suna ryo without the village being in debt to them. This needs to be done. It is the best option we have available to us," Ebiso claimed.

"You're wrong," Shijima said immediately. "We can't become economically dependent on these berries. Infant Island needs them for its people to. If we become dependent on the berries, we will be going back to this island and raping the landscape until we basically colonize it. We cannot be involved on that island. We don't know what is there."

"We have a good idea, Shijima. Scientists of Suna are already in talks of another expedition to the island which you have, for some reason unbeknownst to the rest of us, called "Infant Island." And what is this nonsense of locals? There were no locals mentioned in the report from either yourself or the scientists."

Shijima looked at Gaara, as if asking for help. Gaara gestured for her to continue speaking. "T-There are locals there. I-I didn't write it because I figure that it would be best to bring it up to the council in person."

Ebizo's eyes narrowed. "It was forbidden to leave anything out of the report. Are you saying that you have lied to this council and the Kazekage?"

"Shijima did not lie to me. She told me of the issues as soon as they returned." Gaara sighed. He did not want the topic of Mothra to come up at this meeting, hoping to reject the bill solely on political reasons alone. Surely, the council would not take it seriously. He needed to dance around the topic of Mothra to the best of his ability or they'd instantly be shot down

"There are natives on the island. If we take their crops, we destroy their way of life. We lose our dignity in the name of self preservation. I do not want to be the Great Nation that was forced to destroy an indigenous tribe to recover from a war that we were the winners of."

"May I ask what the issue is with the partnership that was supposed to be discussed with the locals?" Ebizo asked.

"They did not want us to get overzealous," Shijima answered.

"Absolute nonsense. I will not listen to another word of this. I am rejecting your statements on the basis that it was not mentioned in the report. I have to assume that you're lying to us and Lord Kazekage. That is what the code says, Shijima."

Shijima shut her eyes. "We can't do this. We're going to get destroyed if we do."

The room lit up with talking and laughter when Shijima said this and Gaara instantly ordered her to sit down.

"Is this the woman you're going to marry, Lord Kazekage? Perhaps we should reconsider letting her be your right hand woman. She has clearly left you as delusional as she is."

"Now you have just crossed the line. Do not talk about her like that. She's been on that island and she knows what is on it better than anyone else does. Shijima is convinced that we are playing with a dangerous force that we do not understand. I want another expedition to the island and I want to be its personal overseer," Gaara said.

"This notion will not be granted to you until you sign the document stating that we can start tests on the berries as well as sell the berries to Konoha. You sign that bill and we grant you your expedition. Refuse to sign the bill...well, perhaps we will consider removing Shijima from your office."

Gaara scowled at Ebizo who was now wearing a grin on his face. Shijima grabbed his hand and pulled Gaara towards her.

"You still can't sign that. You can't." She said.

"Shijima, we can't win this just threatened our marriage and Ebizo is going to keep pushing me until I sign the bill. I read the bill. The only thing it verifies is the collection of berries that we have here in Suna. The greenhouse is going to study those berries one way or another. I want to meet these twin fairies. When I do and I see it as necessary, I will be able to shut down any other attempted projects that Ebizo pushes on Infant Island. But, I will not let him destroy our future over this and you shouldn't either," Gaara answered.

Tears streaked down Shijima's cheeks and Gaara ran his hand along her soft, wet cheeks.

"I love you," he said before turning back to Ebizo. "I leave for this expedition tomorrow."

"That is fine with us," he replied as Gaara scribbled his name on the bill as Shijima began to cry.

"If the council gets a personal representative to attend with you. We cannot have any more fabrications in the reports, Gaara. Surely you will understand."

"Yeah, whatever," Gaara answered.

###

Suna's gates were opened as Gaara, Shijima, Kankuro, Shikamaru, and Temari stood, waiting for the council's chosen shinobi to join them before they headed out for the second expedition to Infant Island.

"I just got permission to go," Shikamaru said.

"Fantastic," Temari squealed. "It'll be just like old times. The Sand Siblings, together again with their lovers, Shikamaru, Shijima, and uh... Kankuro has his puppets."

"Fuck you," he replied.

"Infant Island is a beautiful place. You'll most certainly agree to that," Shijima said.

"How do you know its name?" Shikamaru asked.

"The cosmos told me," Shijima replied making Shikamaru glare over at Gaara and then Temari.

"It's true. You'll see. I don't have to prove anything right now. I can just say that I will be able to when we get there. You'll see the fairies and Mothra's egg too."

"Shijima, I believe you I do. I believe in the twin fairies and I believe in Mothra's existence. I just don't believe that Mothra is capable of destroying the ninja world. Saying that has become a vague designation because of how many people have said it in the past. I do believe that the cosmos think that Mothra can destroy us. I just see an error with the execution of the idea. I believe that your fiance can probably kill Mothra by himself," Shikamaru said.

Gaara sighed at his comment. "Shikamaru, don't do that. Now I may have to live up to this expectation and I don't even know what Mothra is capable of."

"Surely nothing you can't handle. I'm not worried about it," Shikamaru answered putting his hands on top of his head.

"What's the damn hold up?" Kankuro asked.

"Gotta wait for this "chosen representative" to show up," Temari answered.

After a few minutes of waiting, who Gaara assumed to be the chosen member strolled forward.

It was Matsuri.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Gaara jumped off the ship, hitting as it hit the side of Infant Island. The group had been quiet since Matsuri's arrival. Shijima especially would linger either in the back or next to someone as to always have Matsuri be as far away from her as she could possibly be. Gaara saw this and knew that Shijima was very worried about a fight of some kind breaking out. When he hit the shores of Infant Island for the first time, he couldn't help but take a few minutes to look around. Green was not a color that he saw frequently. Suna's greenhouse was an environment that was best left to the scientists and he would be better off staying out of it. Findings were more important than the process that leads to them.

He admired the way that trees would sway with the wind. It reminded him of Konoha and that one tree he always liked to stand upside down on. He would sit there for hours, feeling the sensation of the blood going up to his head. That was a feeling that he had rather come to enjoy over the years. He ended up going over to some of the trees, seeing if one contained a branch that was capable enough to support him as he focused his chakra on his feet. Determining that it was questionable, he turned back to face the boat, urging the rest of the crew to step out.

"This place seems different. The greenness of the land... Its been... reduced."

"Come on, guys. We need to find the Cosmos," he said.

"I can't believe you even believe in the existence of these fairy tales," Matsuri groaned as she leaped off the boat.

Shijima was about to retaliate but was stopped by Gaara's stern stare. Her comment went ignored the rest of the small crew, but she ran over by Gaara. Shijima and the others hurried to catch up.

"What are we going to say when we find them?" Shijima asked. "They already know we're here. They're using their powers. They know we stole the berries," Shijima cried, panicked.

"Calm down. Nothing is going on yet. They aren't sending their beast on us yet," Shikamaru said.

The team travelled through the woods, Gaara leading the way confidently. His gourd was firmly attached to his back and although Shukaku was no longer inside of him, the sand inside could still be heard shifting as he took a step. Gaara could feel it. He knew that the sand inside of his gourd wanting to latch on to something. It had been awhile since Gaara had experienced active combat. He was getting restless from monotone training sessions in the desert and was hoping that something would attack them. It would give him and his sand something to do.

"How much further?" Matsuri complained.

"Silence," Gaara answered.

"It all looks the same to me. I wish we had a map of this place," Temari groaned.

As the kept walking, they came across a big yellow flower that seemed to dance with the wind just like the trees. It moved slowly but it quickened at the group approached. As Shijima saw it, her eyes widened and she pointed at it.

"Watch out, guys!" She called.

The flower suddenly shot its vines forward. Gaara's sand shot out of its gourd and blocked the blows from the plants vine before trapping it in place. Upon the blocking of all the attempted strikes, the sand wrapped around the vines and made its way up to the flower head before sliding down the stem and began building up. Gaara took his time moving it. The sand methodically wrapped around the plant until the top was encompassed by it.

"Sand Coffin," Gaara said raising his hand levitating the plant before clenching his fist, blowing the thing to smithereens. The group did not suffer a scratch from the plant which began falling as broken parts to the ground.

"Let's go. There is no time to waste," he then said continuing forward.

The group continued going through the woods, saying little to one another. Eventually, they stumbled across an abandoned campground. There were traces of fires as well as a few logs, positioned next to an altar. Upon the altar, a small blue and yellow egg, littered with white polka dots sat.

"Shijima, this looks like the egg. You described to me. I thought you said it was massive," Gaara said.

Shijima came up behind him, inspecting it. "That's what it looks like. That's not the egg though. I think we've stumbled upon the main camp of the natives."

Gaara looked down at the egg before up. Before he could react, two tiny girls that he instantly knew were the cosmos came out from behind it from opposite sides of the egg. They were each dressed in a fine gold, tight dress and had their black hair swooping in opposite directions.

"Gaara Sabaku," they both said together.

Gaara felt the world around him go dark. The scenery around him began to fade to black and he began getting lightheaded. His hands went over his face and he rubbed his eyes. The world around him was now completely gone. All he could see before him was the cosmos. \

"What is happening? What are you doing to me?" Gaara yelled.

"There is no need to shout, Gaara. We have simply fused your consciousness with your subconsciousness. We have entered your mind in an effort to communicate with you on a more personal level."

"Who are you?"

"You know who we are, Gaara. Shijima told you about us as soon as she got back to Suna. We know this to be true,"

"If you can read my thoughts, you already know why I'm here."

"Yes, the people of Sunagakure are still facing a great deal of hardships and you were offended by the fact that we refused to assist you. You also know the reasons of our refusal. You should let it go. Infant Island cannot be friends with those who treat the earth so poorly,"

"You cannot judge us by our usage of the earth's energy. We are all the earth. We live on it. It is our planet. It is our society. It is our life. If we want to survive on this planet that's conditions we would not physically be able to, we need to use the energy of it. The fact that we use it does not make us disrespect it. It makes us respect it. Most of us love nature and being surrounded by it. We love this planet. We need to survive though. The only reason anything on this planet has any stakes is because we are here surviving on it. Without its population, what is earth? Earth is an empty vacuum, devoid of all life. Without us, there would be no need for the earth to have a guardian."

The cosmos both frowned and raise their hands at Gaara. "Is that how you intend to change our minds, by mocking our way of life?"

"Listen, I don't want to offend you or Infant Island. But you cannot be so close-minded as to not aid those who have different beliefs than you. We all need to survive here and that includes everyone on this island. I know that. Look in my thoughts. You know I have no will to you or Mothra. But I can't let a differing philosophy be the cause of harm to my friends. You should not do that either," Gaara protested.

The cosmos were silent for a minute before speaking up. "It is clear that you don't understand everything about the earth. When we say it is living, we mean that it lives as you live. It lives as your brother lives and it lives as Shijima lives. Consider that what Sunagakure is to you, the earth is to us. While you or Shijima had nothing to do with it, Sunagakure's actions against Infant Island on the last venture was another attack on the will of earth. Your people chose to defy their fates and take the berries from us. As Shijima noted, this small action has already had massive consequences on our entire way of life. The ecosystems change frequently here, for the earth works faster on Infant Island. We can't let you do any more damage to our island. We have to protect our people. We have to protect Earth."

The cosmos each held up a hand creating a bright white light. The light caused Gaara to flinch upon its creation. They fired it. Gaara's sand shot out of his gourd to defend him but the ball of light went right through him and pierced through his chest. The force knocked him out of the vision and onto his back, his sand cushioning the fall.

"Gaara." Shijima cried running over to him.

Gaara opened his eyes to see her concerned face, swelling up as she looked down at him. Her hand reached out but the sand viciously grabbed her wrist making her gasp in fear. Her reaction made him get control over his emotions and he backed the sand off which retreated back into the gourd.

"What happened?" she asked.

"I-I don't know," Gaara said seeing the others coming up behind Shijima. "I was with you and then they... they did something to me..."

"The cosmos?" Shikamaru asked curiously.

"Oh I don't like this," Temari admitted.

She continued to further but the sound of her speech went out. Gaara could not hear his sister or the wind anymore. He just heard them.

 _"We have placed a link between us, Gaara Sabaku. Anything that you see, we see. Anything you hear, we hear," They began. "We are one now. We look forward to seeing the disaster of your village."_

The sound of their voices in his head made his body begin shaking. Goosebumps covered his arms the world turned cold. His body gave the same reactions to their voices as when Shukaku would talk to him at night, torment him about his failings. His body as uncomfortable with the return of anything similar.

 _"Oh my... Someone else has lived in your head, haven't they? Your past... Shukaku... Your uncle... Your mother... Your father... We're... very sorry..."_ he heard the cosmos say in his head.

"I want ofd this island, right now. I want off! I want off!" Gaara cried out on the ground.

The nearby cliff exploded when Gaara said this. Rocks and trees scattered everywhere as they fell back to the island. Everyone turned over to where the explosion was.

"Mothra's egg!" Shijima cried.

That's when Gaara saw it. Shijima was right. This egg was unlike anything he had ever seen as well. It bore the same blue and yellow stripes and white polka dots. But it towered over them. The crew stood there, gaping in amazement as Mothra's egg gave off an eerie glow.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

 _"So, this is Sunagakure,"_ the cosmos said in Gaara's head as they returned into the village.

Gaara did not answer the two of them as they began to lecture him on how sand is broken sediment or something. The group came in, Gaara slower to walk in his own home than ever before. The urges from his family and friends to keep up were unlike anything that he'd ever heard in his life. The almost constant nagging made him almost regret setting the expedition.

 _"A shame that their constant nagging has almost made you regret setting the expedition. Perhaps we would not be in this ridiculous situation if they had only nagged at you a bit further. And have you considered thinking some... different thoughts about Shijima. The ones we've found make us a bit uncomfortable."_

'Just shut up," Gaara said, flustered.

 _"We're just saying. I think Shijima would like you to like her for more than just her-"_

'Isn't there any way you can just come here yourselves if you wanted to see the village?'

 _'One too many kidnappings have caused to refrain from more personal adventures. Someone of your history can probably relate to a few bad kidnappings, can you not?'_

The banter ended with that statement. The group approached the Kazekage mansion where they went their separate ways. Gaara and Shijima went inside while the others went to inform the council of Mothra's egg. Gaara went into his mansion and was quick to put his Kazekage robes back on. Shijima was quick to come in the room where she leaned against the doorway.

"I suppose this means our wedding is postponed," she said quietly.

Gaara didn't answer her. He turned his head and looked out at his village, not a word coming out of him. Shijima inched closer to him, linking her arm to his looking out with him. Gaara took a deep breath, still unable to pull himself away from the view. Truth be told, he didn't want to look at Shijima. He didn't want to convey to her that the village was in any kind of danger and that he was neglectful of it when she had brought it to his attention the first time. He didn't want her to know that he wa reluctant to listen to her.

"I just want this mess to be over. I should have never signed off on any uncharted searching in the first place. That's always a bad idea."

"This isn't your fault. This mess is continuing because Ebizo won't back off."

"Don't you think it's time for him to get some disease and die off?"

Shijima laughed and gave Gaara a playful slap in the chest before leaning into him and forcing his arms around her waist. Gaara felt her body moving with every breath that she took as they stood and felt every playful motion her finger made on the back of his hand.

"Maybe we can get married after he's dead. How about that?"

"If they threaten our marriage again, they can take this job and stick it. I'm sure Kakashi would be willing to let us live in Konoha. If not, Naruto would just yell at him until he saw otherwise."

Shijima laughed again. "When do I get to meet this Naruto fellow? I polish the picture of you and him every day. I think I've earned a meeting based on that fact alone, don't you think?"

"Whenever we have to go to Konoha next, probably for some cringeworthy celebration."

As soon as the sentence left his mouth, he could feel the sand in his gourd giving off rumbles.

"Or Konoha could come to you."

Gaara turned around, looking to where the voice came from. His mouth dropped instantly when Sasuke Uchiha stood before him. To his intimidation, Sasuke was dressed in the same outfit as their clash at the Five Kage summit. His face curled into the same scowl, lacking only the darkness although getting rid of the remnants was always the hardest part.

"Sasuke Uchiha?" Shijima stuttered in disbelief.

"Leave us," Gaara ordered her.

"But Gaara, I-"

"Leave us," Gaara said again, more sternly this time.

Shijima bowed and left the room, turning her head to see Sasuke's sword before she left.

"Sasuke, what are you doing here?" Gaara asked.

"I could lie to you. I could say I am here as a personal representative of Konoha and I'm here to respect the partnership of the two villages. But, we both know I've always had a different way of doing things."

 _"It doesn't sound like this one has any respect for much of anything besides himself,"_ the cosmos muttered.

"Then why are you here?"

Sasuke couldn't help but smirk. "You mean you haven't heard? Your council did not tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Those berries that were brought back from this, "Infant Island," are more valuable than you realize. Joint studies by your medical ninja as well as Konoha's have hypothesized to cure a very deadly disease. May I sit down?"

"Go ahead."

Sasuke went directly to the Kazekage chair and plopped himself on it, putting his feet on the desk rudely. Gaara gave him a scowl, but did not want their tense relationship to cause a problem between Suna and Konoha, so chose not to address it.

"And what is the disease?"

"Microscopic Polyangiitis,"

"More about it?"

"Well, MPA, as it is called, has a very personal place in my heart of hatred. You see, as I'm dating a medical ninja, I was able to go through the symptoms of a lot of diseases with her because I wanted to hunt down one illness in particular."

"And?"

Sasuke chuckled. "MPA, dear Gaara, is the number one candidate for the disease that killed Itachi. So you see where I'm going with this. If there's a cure to the disease that killed my brother, I want it found. You're sitting on the biggest medical discovery in the history of the field. And from what I've been told, you want to simply reject any study of it of any kind. Well I'm sorry. I cannot allow that."

"Is that supposed to be a threat? Before you walk in here and threaten me, may I remind you that the one who pulled Madara out of his Susanoo in the war is standing right in front of you. If I can handle his, I can handle yours if it ever came to that."

"Why are you being so resistant to everything, Gaara? What are you afraid of?"

"There are things that go into this, Sasuke. There are many things that you do not understand about this situation. It is far more complicated than you are allowed to know at this point."

 _"People like him are why your world is flawed, Gaara. Users just like this one here crawl over the surface, reducing the earth to nothing but a tool against itself. Death is simply part of the balance. Preventive measures against natural death are disrespectful to the cycle of life. For some, death comes earlier than others. While a sad reality, not accepting it goes against the earth that allowed any life at all to live in the shell that a body is. That is why Mothra allows herself to go through the earth's processes. While blessed with powers by the earth, Mothra makes sure she always respects to the earth and gives back to it by going through every part of the life. This is why the earth continues to bless Mothra and allow her to continue her services to it."_

The cosmos' lecture made Gaara focus in on what they were saying, ignoring Sasuke's response in its entirety.

"You listen to me when I'm talking to you, asshole!" Sasuke cried getting in Gaara's face, so much that a small ball of sand had to come in between the two of them to separate them.

"Voices going on in that crazed head of yours?" he then asked.

Gaara's eyes narrowed at the Uchiha.

"Listen, Gaara. As soon as I leave here. I'm going to that island. I already snuck figured out where it is and to detain me is to start tensions with Konoha that aren't needed right now."

Gaara shook his head. "Sasuke, no. You can't go to that island. You can't."

"Haha, and why not? Gaara, what's on that island? What the hell has the Kazekage so scared?"

Gaara did not answer.

 _"Gaara, do not be afraid. Tell him what you've seen. What awaits him here is death. Nothing more. He vastly overestimates himself."_

There was a knock at the door. "Gaara, Kankuro is here. We have to report to Ebizo immediately," Shijima called from the other side of the door.

"On my way," Gaara said looking over to Sasuke, who was no longer standing in the room. He was gone.

'Was that even real?' he asked.

 _"It was very real, we're afraid. If Sasuke comes to Infant Island, we will deal with him and punish Konoha effectively. As for your current situation, we are loooking forward to meeting with the Suna council. It appears that there is much to discuss. Let us be on our way. The meeting awaits."_

* * *

Hey, everyone. I know it's been awhile. I was very busy with school and finishing my novel. When my novel was almost done, my attention became very focused on pushing through that process to get the first draft done and out of the way. I'm happy to say I'm now in the process of editing it and adding to it. As it is right now, it is much like this fic with how skeletal it is. (I am aware that this fic skeletal. But that's all I'm really willing to give fanfics at the stage I am with trying to get my novel fleshed out.) But, I'm glad to see that no one has reviewed this poorly yet. I am pleased to say that I'm going to be rewatching the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy to get refreshed on my Mothra lore, as her first appearance doesn't seem that far away at this point. Thanks for the patience with waiting.


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